Hello everyone, I'm 17 and have yet to convince my parents to let me drive a cl***ic; I was thinking splitting the cost 50/50. Anyway I was looking for something not too expensive. I have heard good things about the early 60s Fords, I really like the looks of the 1962 fairlane in particular. I live in California, so I know it's a great place for old cars, but would a Fairlane with a 170 or 200 six engine stand up to a ~20 mile commute each day with half on the highway? How much would I expect to spend on fuel and maintenance each year and are these cars safe at all? Does it have a high risk of being stolen? How much is a reasonable amount to spend on one? I know it's a lot of questions so thanks a lot for answers. P.S. I'm an Asian guy, but I get turned off by giant spoilers and fart can exhausts (HATE the ricer stereotype), I'd much rather have a good looking cruiser. Speed is no issue, as long as it can take highway driving.
I like that you are thinking about this !!! Early Falcons and Fairlanes are a great first cl***ic car - simplistic in design, parts readily available and fairly economical (both the run and repair) Older cars do have issues though as a general rule, after all you are talking about something 51 years old. So they do require a bit more maintenance than new cars and are more prone to possible problems. So the question needs to be, do you have any mechanical knowledge? Are you willing to learn? Do you have a friend or older person that would/could mentor you i the wonderful world of old cars? If so, and you are patient when something goes wrong, and it will, then welcome to our world! As for commuting in a 170 or 200 six, they are just fine. Just remember you are not going to be the guy in the fast lane doing 80. I drove my Ranchero with a 200 six on a 35 mile each way commute for a long time (but then again I am doing that same commute in a 1963 40 HP VW bug now) with no problems at all. You should get mid to high 20's MPG and oil changes etc are no more expensive than a new car - might be less. These cars are plenty safe, after all our parents drove them when new and they didn't all get killed. Brakes aren't as good as a modern car, so drive accordingly - don't tailgate. Theft risk on a 62 Fairlane shouldn't be too high Good luck with your search
it is great that you are interested in owning a older car. there are no easy answers to your questions, and situation. a lot depends on how well you and your parents get along. plus, is there someone in your Family that has an old car that can help you? your driving skills are important too. your budget will help determine the quality of car you can get. best to find one that someone has already done work on that runs and drives good. things like seat belts could help your parents see that old car is a good thing. best to not limit yourself to one particular year, make & model. search here in cars For Sale section for cars in your area and within your budget. also, craigslist along with searchtempest.com and other sites
Thanks! I was looking to maybe spend 5 thousand tops on any car, as my dad is really quite stingy I like 60-63 falcons, too, and a 61 Impala would be REALLY nice, though probably way out of my price range. At a price like this, would I need to spend a lot more fixing things up (disk brakes, engine/drive train/trans etc) or should I just go with something slightly more expensive? I'm not an expert, especially cause my folks like newer Japanese cars that are a pain for any DIY work (and they go to the mechanic to get their oil changed).
An early Falcon six (especially 170 or 200) will serve you fine. Disc brakes would be a nice upgrade and aren't that expensive to do, but you will need someone to help that understands these things and TOOLS Where in So cal are you?
Do your research first and put it in writing to your parents maybe even a spreadsheet. I did this when I was 16 and ended up showing them I could afford the car I wanted. Make sure to look at insurance cost, approximate fuel costs and other misc repairs. If you really want a 61 Impala, look for a 4 door, still cool but cheaper. It's not as economiocal as the falcon or fairlane but a small V8 or a striaght six won't hurt too bad. Plus the initial purchase price savings will buy alot of gas. As said above, seat belts can be installed to add to the safety factor. Another idea might be an early 60's pickup truck. Sell the folks on the utility of the truck for hauling any of their stuff. Many of these were available with six cylinders that produced MPG in the 20's. Good luck!!
I'm in OC. My parents have a friend who's a mechanic, so I might work at his shop during the summer. I'm not too concerned with speed or even having something that looks fast... so a 4 door car, any kind, is definitely not off my list. Had just one more question. How would one of these cars hold up in a collision? I've heard things ranging from crushing plastic imports to getting crushed by plastic imports, and don't want to become the subject of my own little horror story
They were designed before crumple zones, so there are pluses and minuses. They are much tougher in low speed collisions; a 5-10mph crash will probably result in minimal damage to a '62 Fairlane, while causing thousands of damage to a modern car. But, more substantial crashes can be very dangerous; modern cars with crumple zones are designed to absorb impacts and direct the energy around the driver, where as in an old car, most of that crash energy is going to be directly felt by you. There is absolutely no argument that any modern car is much safer than a cl***ic, but if you're a safe driver, drive defensively and are aware of the shortcomings of a 50 year old car, you will be fine. Modern cars are idiot resistant, but the #1 best safety feature any car can have is a safe driver, and even an old car can have that.
A 1972 two door Fairlane, with the small six was my very first car. I worked after school at a radio station to buy it. What great memories. It was a great first car, although I didn't know it at the time. I wanted something with more go, like a Galaxy with the 390 motor. My parents, in their infinite wisdom, said NO. In hind sight that was a good thing. I'd have killed myself for sure. If you can find a 72 Fairlane in decent shape, grab it.
Part of that crash "misinformation" comes from a "test" that was done a few years back and became an internet sensation of a modern ****box and a 59 Impala. The Impala was destroyed, but what they failed to disclose was that it was a rust bucket that was so bad it shouldn't have been on the road to begin with.
My first car was a 66 Galaxie station wagon.. this was in 2005. I payed 500 dollars for it and drove it home. I spent a lot of time just taking things off of it and replacing them just for fun. I learned a lot about cars that way. Driving old cars is a blast, they can be reliable but you need to learn the basics of what you are going to deal with like Carbs, timing, tune up.. ect. Once you got that down anyone one the HAMB can help with the rest. Good luck!
you might get lucky and get one of the Fairlane sixes that had 5bolt wheels; that makes adding disc brakes easy as can be. those cars are light and don't NEED a lot of extra **** like power steering or power brakes to be safe and reliable and easy to handle. go through the front suspension and replace any worn parts; put in new shocks and go through the brakes as well. add at least front shoulder belts if the car has lap belts. a 170 or 200 six with a three speed manual trans ought to get you near 20mpg and still be peppy; an automatic will likely be a 2spd fordomatic; a little slow for highway driving but okay in town. as far as crash safety, your biggest danger is pickup trucks and suv's. i've owned a bunch of Falcons over the years and wouldn't mind driving one for a daily again. Fairlanes are simply BIG Falcons to me.
The mid-size Ford Fairlanes/Mercury Meteors, whether with a six cylinder or eight cylinder came with 5-bolt wheels. But the Falcon, Mustang, and Mercury Comet is a different story. I've own a 1962 Ford Fairlane and love it, I bought mine as a project and learned as I went. But I'm fortunate to have mentors that guided me through the process. Like EchoOfGecko said: "Modern cars are idiot resistant, but the #1 best safety feature any car can have is a safe driver, and even an old car can have that." Good Luck! Tom - Gl***_Packs
I've seen photos of that test.... the Chevy was a clean car but it has an X frame and the collision was left front to left front so once the left front suspension was ripped off and the frame easily bent there wasn't anything to keep the steering column from going into the driver's chest and the other car from wadding up the old Chevy. That being said, my very first car was a '63 Fairlane Sports Coupe.... loved it until that '65 SS327 Nova came along. Is it more damgerous than a new car? Well, yeah but driving anything is more dangerous than sitting at home in a chair. Ya gotta live life!!!!
I'm stoked on owning one of those one day. 62-3 fairlanes are great cars. You can take them a few different directions in terms of style. They can be street-sweeping muscle cars, or nice little cruisers. I wanted a custom for my first build, so I went earlier, but I plan on building one of these cars into a B/fx or street sweeping little muscle car one day.
Kootenya4, As much as I would like to tell you a little Fairlane would be a great choice for you, honestly it's not. It would be great as a project or a "date cruiser" once you got 'er right but for a everday car in your situation you need something modern. I reccomend a 92-early 96 Ford F-150. It's basicly the same design as a 1965 F-100 except modernized. You can find early 90s pickups well kept and very reasonable in price. What you save here will allow you to save your pennies and then get you a project. You'll need the truck for your parts hunting adventures. I checked the old car values the otherday. A 1964 Ford Fairlane Sport Coupe 289 car in average condition is valued at $12,000. You can find them a lot cheaper but the cheaper they are the more work they require. Its difficult to fix up a car and drive it everyday.
I had a '64 4-door Fairlane a few years ago. 200 c.i. 6 cylinder with the 2 speed Fordomatic. I did a valve job on it, one of the exhaust seats was in really bad shape (due to unleaded fuel?). It was a former GSA car, and had no power options, which helped keep repair and maintenance costs down. The 2 biggest problems were the sluggish Fordomatic, and a rubber gasket between the heater box and the heater vents themselves. I would own another one in a heartbeat, but I would look for a 3 speed manual (with overdrive?) that 2 speed auto kinda ****ed in mine, and getting it rebuilt might be tricky. I think the V8 ones came with a C4, in 1964. I'm not sure about the '62-63 models though. And seat belts would be a good idea, if for no other reason than it had no dash pad and all those exposed dash knobs. Look for rust in the floor.
62-3s had If equipped with 3spd autos had a Ford a Matic based 3 speed marketed as a Cruisamatic. All Ford 3spd autos were called Cruisamatics then. The 1964 Fairlane Cruisamatic was a new design. It was a dual range C-4. The dual range feature allowed the car to start out in high to avoid traction loss in rain, snow or ice. In Ford nomemclature C=1960s 4= the year of debut .
way to go f-one. steer a guy away from the car he likes and into a modern pickup truck. and, btw; old car value guides aren't the bible, dude, just a rough guide, especially in THIS economy.
Hey Kootenay4, I'm also in California... and I was looking for something to replace my newer daily driver. I started really looking at 64-65 Falcons. I had found a stock 65 V8 car in Whittier for around $6000. Had nice paint & interior and drove really great! It really didn't need anything, except maybe disc brakes as it was going to be a daily driver. After that deal fell thru, I found this 62 Futura (which I bought about 1 month ago) I picked it up for $5000 down in Oceanside. It's got a 170 6cyl with a bunch of Clifford goodies. Brand new paint, interior, chrome, wheels, etc... Disc Brake kit up front with an 8" rear-end. It's not the fastest car in town, but it's been really reliable and it turns a lot of heads. I guess what I'm trying to say is there are still some really great deals out there! Good luck on your quest. Post pictures of whatever it is you end up buying. -Jeremy
Wow, I have a 62, 63, and 64 Fairlane. After reading this Im listing them on Ebay in hopes of selling them all and buying a 92 F150. Surely I will get more booty in that. I wanted a 64 Marauder, but since its the exact same car as a 1999 police car, I may just visit the police impound and bid on one.
The 62-65 Fairlanes are a great way to get started and learn. Many of the upgrades already mentioned , are a good idea. ( Seat belts !! ) Take your time and look for a good driver
x2 The car you are looking for is out there. Just be sure to check underneath these unibody cars for any rust issues.Rust repairs can be costly to repair if you don't have the abilities to do the repairs yourself. Years ago I had a friend who bought a really nice looking "restored" 65 mustang convertible that drove funny. When we got it on a lift we discovered the previous owner had duct taped cardboard on the torque boxes and sprayed undercoating on that to hide the rust damage. As simple as these cars are you should be able to do most mechanical repairs yourself with a few tools. Be it be sure to take someone who is mechanically inclined to look at cars with you or take it to a shop you trust to check it out. Happy hunting and good luck with your quest.
It can be done by a young guy on a budget with some serious shopping. My son (14) just picked up a 65 Camino with a clear ***le out of a dry part of CA for 450. Then another 550 for 4 speed trans, clutch, linkage, and pedals, 100 for a 283 and he's ready to run as soon as we ***emble. Not fancy, not fast, but done with HIS money. He's been mowing my yard and scrubbing toilets for a couple of years and saving everyting he made just to buy something. The ***le is in his name, mine only because he's under 18 and my responsibility. It can be done, just look for the right deal at the right time. Devin
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